Preoperative Peripheral Nerve Blocks Attenuate Intraoperative Surgical Stress and Postoperative Pain in Patients Undergoing Orthopedic Surgery

In orthopedic surgery, peripheral nerve block can be used as an anesthesia adjuvant prior to surgery. In this study, we hypothesized that peripheral nerve blocks may alleviate inflammatory response and reduce the analgesics requirement. Sixty patients undergoing limb orthopedic surgery will be enrolled. Peripheral nerve block was injected with 0.25% bupivacaine under ultrasound guidance. 30 patients (Study group) underwent surgery with nerve blocks and another 30 patients (Control group) underwent surgery with morphine. The anesthetic protocol was standardized for both groups by experienced anesthesiologists. Surgical stress was assessed by blood pressure fluctuation and proinflammatory cytokine. Pain intensity was measured by numeric rating scale (NRS) score for 24 hours